


Something Precious

by musesmistress



Category: Fringe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-14
Updated: 2013-02-14
Packaged: 2017-11-29 06:55:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/684113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musesmistress/pseuds/musesmistress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter discovers that the Olivia he's been spending time with wasn't the right one and does what he can to get her back and protect her - even after Walternate has used her to get what he wants.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Something Precious

Peter's heart was pounding in his chest as he made his way through the corridors, looking in on every door. Down another corridor he could hear the slamming of the window covers as Astrid did the same thing. They knew she was here, in this maze of a medical hospital, but finding her was proving to be harder than expected and time was running very, very short.

They'd come here with what Walter called 'a lifeline' a link back to their world after a set amount of time. That time had been twelve hours. They'd been here for eleven hours and fifty-three minutes. Peter unconsciously checked his watch again and saw another minute tick by. He was quickly running out of time and there were still loads of corridors left to search, potentially hundreds of rooms.

Peter yanked open the next window cover to an empty room and slammed it shut, in frustration he let his head rest against the door before he pushed up and headed for the next corridor. As he turned it, to see a daunting line of horribly similar doors, he heard Astrid calling for him. He turned back, running down the last row of rooms he'd checked and turned to the right to see Astrid standing about midway down the hallway. The look of terror on her face seemed fixed and became frightening the closer he got. He was afraid to look in the window, scared he'd find her dead, but at the same time, he couldn't look away, his eyes fixing on the dark room as he stepped up close. Olivia was pressed against the back wall, her knees pulled up to her chest and a hand covering her eyes from the bright light.

"Four minutes," Astrid said, unnecessarily reminding him of the short time they had and the things they had to do in order to get Olivia out. The worst of which was getting into the cell.

With shaking hands, Peter pulled out the sets of keys he'd stolen from this world's Walter Bishop and clumsily dropped two of the sets on the floor. Astrid retrieved them and quickly tried a key in the lock. She pulled it out and he jammed one of his in as she separated the first and readied another. His watch beeped the three minute marker as Astrid tried the last key on of the first set and he would have smiled at his discarding the bunch down the corridor of this situation had been anything but frightening and desperate.

He yanked apart two sets of keys that had tangled together and watched as Astrid fit a fifth from her last set into the door. It moved a little and for a moment his heart skipped, thinking they had found the right one, but she pulled it back and shoved the last one in. Nothing.

"Get everything else ready," he told her, she gave a small nod and stepped back, pulling her backpack off her shoulder as she moved and letting the keys drop to the floor. "It's here," Peter said in frustration. "It has to be here," he almost shouted as he shoved another key in, twisted it and finally unlocked the door.

He couldn't muster the will to shout in triumph, he just pulled the door open as his watch beeped a warning for their last minute and moved in. On the other side of the room, Olivia backed away from him. Chest heaving, Peter hesitated, stopping in his tracks to watch her for a split second before he decided he didn't have the time to be gentle and care about what they'd done to her. He had to get her out of there and now.

Astrid was in past him, the bag flung unceremoniously on the bed next to Olivia and the wrist strap in hand. Olivia shied away from them again and Astrid stopped to turn and look at him. He moved forward quickly as his watched started to beep down their last twenty seconds. He wrapped the band around her wrist as she tried to writhe free, her eyes still covered from the flood of light and she let out a scream as he pulled the bad tight around her thinner than normal wrist.

At ten seconds, Astrid’s watch joined in the rhythm and Peter grabbed the bag and flung it at her before he pulled the struggling Olivia into his arms. They had to be standing and it didn't seem like she'd do that willingly. He just managed to get her up off the bed as the watches let out a long tone as they hit zero and Peter felt that familiar tug of his world pulling him back, like it was ripping his skin off with a feather duster before breaking his bones into manageable pieces and putting them back together again. The tingling feeling it left made him dizzy for a moment and he noticed that it had the effect of settling Olivia down for a moment.

"This isn't where we're meant to be," Astrid said, drawing Peter from his thoughts to look around.

"Where are we?" he asked. The empty room was bitterly cold and dull, as though no one had bothered to care for it while it was unoccupied. Green walls and a beige carpet were topped with an oddly orange lamp shade on the light above him. All but one set of white curtains where drawn and Peter watched Astrid step up to the window.

"We're not in Kansas anymore."

"Not that we know where Kansas is to start with."

"Good point." Astrid moved away from the window and tried the nearest door. She vanished into the room and reappeared with a cup in her hand. "The last owners left us a cup of mould."

"Lovely," Peter said sarcastically as Astrid set it back on a table just inside the kitchen. She moved to the next room and disappeared inside. Peter's eyes were drawn to Olivia, she'd been strangely still since they arrived, a complete contracts to the fight she'd put up moments again. Now, her eyes were fixed on him, a blank stare that he hoped hadn't been her mask for emotions for the last six months. He wanted to see her emotions, know if she was afraid of him, if she believed he was really there and had finally taken her from the nightmare she'd been living.

"Well," Astrid said, returning from the room. "They left a mattress, but I wouldn't recommend it."

"Help me get my bag off," Peter said, kneeling on the ground and resting Olivia's legs over his so he could slip his arm out. With the bag off, Astrid opened it and pulled out the blanket he'd packed. They'd anticipated finding Olivia in any number of states and between them had medical supplies, clothes, blankets and even Ella's night bear that the girl had insisted they bring.

He thought about that conversation with Ella as they wrapped Olivia in the blanket, she'd missed her aunt, always asked about her whenever Peter went round to visit and had always understood when he'd told her he couldn't tell her were Olivia was. A week before coming here, he'd told Ella and Rachel that Olivia had been captured by bad people, he hadn't told them anything specific, he'd explained that they were going to attempt to get her back, but they had no idea if they'd be successful this time or if they'd get a second chance. Ella had asked why they wouldn't get to go again and Peter had had to swallow hard before telling her they didn't know if Olivia was alive. That was when Ella had gone to get her bear.

"Let's go find somewhere better to stay until tomorrow," Peter said, lifting Olivia back into his arms and pausing as she set her head against his shoulder. It was nice, unexpected, but very nice to feel her relaxing against him. 

~

Finding a place to stay hadn't been particularly hard. Outside in the cold evening air, they stopped a guy to ask for direction and he'd pointed them to a motel only a block away. Inside the room, Peter carefully laid Olivia down on the first bed and looked over at Astrid as she started unpacking things from her bag at the second bed.

"You gonna be okay in here for a while?" Astrid nodded. "I'm gonna go find out where we are and work out how to get back to Boston." He looked back at Olivia, studying her face and wondering just how much food they'd given her. She looked unnaturally thin and pale, though he suspected her pigment has something to do with being locked up for six months. "I won't be long," he said tightening the blanket around Olivia. "I'll sleep on the couch." He straightened up without paying attention and felt Olivia grab his arm as he moved it away. "Olivia," he breathed.

"Don't go," she whispered.

Peter moved to sit on the edge of her bed. "I won't be long," he said watching the tears slip down the side of her face. Olivia shook her head and let out a barely audible 'please'.

"I can go," Astrid offered. "There's a train station just down the road, I can get information there."

"Be careful," Peter said, watching as she grabbed some of the money they had tucked in a secret pocket of the bag.

Left alone, Peter knew he had to get a few things done, thing he would have preferred Astrid handle, but they didn't have much choice now. He wrapped a hand over hers on his arm.

"I'm just gonna go into the bathroom and get some water, clean you up a little, okay?" Olivia only nodded as another tear escaped down the side of her face. Peter couldn't help but wipe it away before he got up.

He returned from the bathroom with lukewarm water and a washcloth and set them both down on the bedside table before going back for a towel. He stopped to pull a t-shirt from Astrid's bag and then moved back to Olivia's side.

"I need to get your out of these clothes, Olivia," he said, trying hard not to have to pause and clear his throat at the thought of what that entailed. "If you want me to stop, just tell me and we'll wait for Astrid to get back. Okay?"

Olivia nodded again and Peter had to swallow hard before he dropped the towel and t-shirt on the bed beside her pillow. He swallowed again before unwrapping her from the blanket and letting it fall across the bed. He hesitated for a moment, deciding the best way to start and then reached out and started unbuttoning the jumpsuit. He was thankful for the t-shirt she had on under it, but became very aware that she had no bra below that. He tried to focus on other things, like the cut across her cheek, it wasn't deep and had already started to heal, but it was clear no one had bothered to let her wipe the blood off. He could see a scar above her lip from another injury and found himself hoping she wasn't going to be riddle with cuts and bruises.

Reaching the last button, Peter paused. He could see the shape of her upper body clearly at this point, the t-shirt, helped by gravity clung to her sides showing off the shape of her breasts and waist. But his eyes barely took those in as they fixed on her stomach. She was pregnant.

"Peter," she practically begged, her hand reaching for him. He pushed back, getting to his feet and ran a hand down his face, trying to clear his mind of her being raped by people from the other side. His eyes stung with the thought of it and he could feel the anger boiling up as he moved away from her and over to the window.

He flattened his arm across his and let his head thud painfully against it. He watched Astrid jog across the street back to the motel and vanish under the walkway below him.

"Peter," Olivia tried, but he couldn't turn to look at her. "It's not what you think." He could hear the pain in her voice and wanted nothing more than to turn and wrap her in a protective hug. He had known from the start that rape was possible, but he hadn't allowed himself to imagine it actually happening. "Please, Peter." she breathed as the door opened and Astrid stepped back in.

He knew she paused inside the door, her eyes taking in the room and Peter's location. He adjusted his focus and realised Olivia was sitting curled on the bed, her stomach covered by one side of the blanket and then blocked by a leg she'd pulled up close to her chest.

"What's going on?" Astrid asked. Peter didn't answer, he couldn't, all he felt was suffocating pain in his chest. He turned, crossed the room and vanished out the door Astrid still held open. He barely heard Olivia calling for him as he walked down the balcony and stopped at the other end. Elbows on the railing, Peter pushed his eyes into his fists, trying to force the images out of his mind and almost jumped as Astrid placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her for just a moment before turning to look down in the courtyard below.

"She's pregnant," he said numbly. "Probably about four months." Astrid let out a breath she seemed to be holding. Peter grit his teeth, grinding them together against the emotions. "They raped her," he choked.

"Maybe," Astrid said.

"Maybe? What other answer is there?"

"She was captured by the alternate Walter," Astrid said simply, making the answer seem obvious. Peter took in the implications of that thought, wondering if being experimented on by two different Walter Bishop's was better than being raped. "She says it's not what you think. I thought exactly what you did, that she'd been raped, but if you think about it, being with a Walter, this could be any number of things."

"Each as disturbing as the next." He said.

Astrid nodded. "I don't think she was raped, Peter. She's too calm, too close to you for that to have happened and after six months there with nothing but that, she'd have distanced herself from any man that came into that cell."

Peter shook his head and let out a sardonic laugh. "Why does all this seem horribly and perfectly normal?"

"Because we do this every day."

Peter laughed. "Did you find out where we are?"

"North Billerica, we're an hour from Boston and the only trains that run each day leave at 10:42 and 19:40."

"10:42 it is," Peter said. "We need to get her out of that jumpsuit and get some sleep." He turned back to the room with Astrid following him.

~

In Boston, before leaving the train station, Peter made sure Olivia was okay on her feet standing near the phones and vanished into the cafe opposite while Astrid called Broyles. She had called the night before from North Billerica while she was out, he had told her to call when they got back to Boston and he'd either send someone to get them or arrange to meet them somewhere. Peter knew she'd be telling him that Olivia was exhausted, dehydrated and probably malnourished too. As he picked up sandwiches and drinks he wondered if Astrid would tell her boss that Olivia was pregnant, or if she'd wait and let him figure it out himself. Knowing Broyels, he'd have them meet at a hospital so she could be checked out, but he didn't think that was at all good for Olivia's current mental state.

She'd been completely calm as he and Astrid changed her, cleaned her and made sure none of the cuts she had were infected. They laid her back on the bed and covered her with the sheets and Peter had turned to head for the bathroom and she'd panicked. Every time Peter got up, he had to explain where he was going and why before she would release her grip on his arm. Astrid settled down on her bed and fell asleep quickly, while Peter stayed next to Olivia attempting to coax her to sleep, promising he'd be there when she woke and that she wouldn't wake in that cell ever again. He'd ended up laying on the edge of her bed with her back pressed against his chest and an arm clutched to her chest, held in place by her tight grip.

They'd had to change trains a couple of times on their way back and only once had Olivia asked to walk to the next train. She'd been shaky and slow in moving and Peter had almost hit one guy for shoving past her and making her trip. He'd stepped onto the last train just as it was leaving the station with her cradled in his arms, the blanket wrapped tight around her and Astrid had to steady him as they made their way through the train looking for somewhere to sit. They'd ended up sitting across from two women who sat watching as he rested her back against the side of the train and Astrid had grabbed a spare shirt from his bag and rolled it up as a pillow. She'd slept most of the way back and when she had woken and found not only those two women watching her, but those in the four seats opposite, she had started to cry from shame.

He stepped up to the counter and quickly paid for their late lunch. Stepping out of the cafe, his eyes found Olivia, struggling to stand where he'd left her. From this distance she looked seriously ill, drained of life and pale, even for her. Sensing that she couldn't stand for much longer, Peter walked over to them as Astrid finished the call and handed her bag. He felt a little bad that she was carrying everything, but he couldn't manage his bag as well as Olivia. Astrid didn't object as he quickly wrapped his arms around Olivia.

"I got ya," he said, one arm across the back of her shoulders and the other across her mid back. "Not long now and you can lay down again." She nodded against his neck.

"Broyels wants to meet us at Massive Dynamics, he thinks she should have a check up before going home. Nina Sharp has offered the use of their medical facilities"

Peter nodded and adjusted his hold on Olivia so he could pick her up and carry her outside. He tried hard to ignore the people watching and became very aware of the couple in front of them in a long line for cabs. The woman had turned just slightly to look and see who was behind her and had spotted Olivia easily, she hadn't turned back, choosing instead to rudely stand and stare at him holding her.

Annoyed at her, Peter turned to Astrid. "How far away is the hospital?" he asked loud enough that several people down the line heard them. Astrid was no fool, and she'd watched the woman watching him with disgust on her face. She easily played his game.

"I don't know, can't be more than half an hour," she replied. It wasn't that far, but she'd set him up perfectly for the next question.

"What time is it now?"

She checked her watch. "Twenty before one."

"We're gonna be late." He didn't even finish the sentence before several people in front of him moved to let them get closer to the front. He thanked each of them as they moved two people from the front of the line and wondered if he should feel guilty for the trick. He couldn't bring himself to care a few minutes later as he settled Olivia in the can between himself and Astrid and asked for their real destination.

~

As he followed the Massive Dynamic employee down the corridor past Broyles and into a room with Olivia in his arms, Peter was only vaguely aware that Walter was stood, mostly hidden in the doorway to another room. The thought hadn't occurred to him until that point that Walter would be here, and it flooded his mind in a way that sparked every nerve ending into screaming 'Olivia will be frightened of him'. Shoving the thought away, he lay Olivia down on the bed and watched as the doctor approached. 

"Any ideas on her condition?" He asked.

"Dehydrated, probably malnourished, she's only had toast, eggs, soup and bread for the time she was with them," Peter explained.

"Exhausted," Astrid added. "Lethargic, shaky. I noticed a fever this morning and she's very clingy to Peter or me."

"And pregnant," Peter finished off.

"They fed her toast, eggs, soup and bread?" Astrid nodded. It wasn't a very healthy diet for anyone, let alone a pregnant woman. He opened his mouth to speak again when the door opened and Broyles came in, followed causiously by Walter. Peter noticed that Olivia was awake, probably had been through the last conversation and her eyes fixed for a moment on Broyles before she caught sight of Walter.

All the energy that built up from sleeping for so long seemed to come alive in her and she twisted off the bed and staggered to the corner of the room, as far away from him as possible. Peter, Astrid and the doctor followed, trying to calm her down as her body began to shake and she screamed in Walter's direction for him to stay away. She crumbled and Peter caught her, wrapping his arms around her and listening to her babbles about Walter using her for experiments. The words seemed to carry across the room and Peter turned to watch the hurt cross Walter's face before he turned and left the room.

Peter let the doctor take Olivia from him before he followed Walter and Broyles out of the room.

~

Astrid helped Doctor Miller lift Olivia back onto the bed, her hands clinging to his scrubs shirt, he had to pry them off before he could turn to the two nurses who had stepped in via a different door to get instructions. IV's, blood samples and a range of equipment and monitors were requested before Miller turned back to the now calm Olivia.

"Olivia," he started, his tone softer than Astrid thought was strictly necessary. "I need to know what they did to you while you were on the other side." It didn't shock Astrid that he knew, he worked for Massive Dynamic after all and he'd probably been briefed by Nina Sharp before they arrived. "Did they give you injections?"

"The baby," Olivia stumbled over the words. Doctor Miller looked confused, but Astrid had an idea of what she meant. " _He_ wanted to see if it could be done, if the Cortexiphan would work that way."

"Work what way?" Miller asked.

"I think he was trying to find out if it passed on to off-spring," Astrid supplied. "He implanted the baby?" she said asking the question only with the last word. Olivia nodded and Astrid made a note to tell Peter they didn't do anything as horrible as he'd originally thought.

"I guess then you wouldn't know who the baby belongs to." Miller said as the nurse attached an IV bag to the needle she'd inserted while they talked.

Giving up on the line of questioning as Olivia closed her eyes, he pulled the stethoscope from around his neck and started listening to her heart and breathing. Another nurse appeared and took her blood pressure before taking a blood sample. For a moment, as she watched them work, she suspected that Olivia had fallen asleep, but a tear slipped down the side of her face and she blindly reached for Astrid.

"I'm here," Astrid promised, taking Olivia's hand.

"It's Peter's baby." Olivia said. Astrid blanched in confusion for a moment.

"Did they tell you that?"

"It makes sense," Olivia said, shaking her head. "Walter had him back, but lost him," she winced as she twisted her arm awkwardly. "He knew he wouldn't get him back easily, this is his back up plan."

Astrid opened her mouth to speak but Nina interrupted. "Agent Farnsworth, Agent Broyles would like you to take Walter home. Peter will be in here to take your place once you've left." Astrid nodded to the woman then turned back to Olivia.

"You're home now," she said. "You can relax here, no one will hurt you."

Olivia bit her lip. "Please," she said before she would let Astrid go. "Don't tell him. I want proof first."

"I can help with that." Miller said. "I can test the baby's DNA against possible fathers, I just need his DNA sample."

Astrid pulled away from Olivia and walked to the side of the room. In their rush to get Olivia in here, she'd dropped their bags on the floor just inside the door, she rummaged around in Peter's first and came up holding a toothbrush.

"With this do?"

"Perfect." Astrid handed it to Miller, collected the bags and vanished out the door.

~

"So how is out new patient?" Nina asked once Astrid was out of the room.

"Her skin is dry from dehydration, they didn't seem to give her a lot of water, or any other liquid for that matter. Blood pressure is low, I suspect, based on what I've been told, that she will need a cocktail of vitamins for a while to get her strength up. Otherwise, she's healthy, there are no problems with her heart, eyes, ears or lungs. I haven't checked on the fetes’ yet, I'm waiting for the ultrasound now."

Nina nodded. "Thank you, Andy. Get her to a level where she can go home and supply Peter or Astrid with a list of what to give her to get her back to one hundred percent. It's been suggested that she needs familiar and comfortable surroundings and a medical facility is far from that."

"And here I thought it was home." Miller joked. Nina smiled at him and left the room, passing Peter on his way in.

~

With Peter in the room, the doctor did an ultrasound of the baby and took a DNA sample. He told Peter it was to be sure the baby was healthy, but Peter was no fool and had his own suspicions for the reasoning. Unable to walk very far or stay awake for longer than an hour, Olivia spent four days in the medical facility. After an argument with Rachel on her second day home, Peter arranged for her and Ella to visit, though they weren't permitted to stay long, they were at least allowed to see that she was okay.

The morning before Olivia could go home, Peter entered the room with Walter behind him. The change in Olivia's posture from seeing him to spotting Walter was shockingly fast. He could see that she wanted to run, wanted to get away from him, but she held her place, body stiff as she stared at him. It took several minutes before either of them moved or spoke and it was Walter who took a carefully measured step forward, letting the door close behind him. Olivia stiffened more and Peter reached out and took her hand.

"I feel I should apologise," Walter said.

"For what?" Olivia asked. Her hand tightened around Peter's as Walter took a step closer.

"Everything that has happened has been my fault."

It took Olivia a few minutes to compose a response. "You didn't lock me in that dark cell for six months. You're not him and I am the one who has to remember that."

"I could have been him."

"You stopped that from happening," Peter offered. "Bell said he removed part of your brain because you asked him to, because you didn't want to become that Walter."

"That doesn't mean I wouldn't do what he did. He must have done tests, your Cortexiphan levels would be of great interest, especially if they only ever gave it to Peter."

"Wait, what?"

"That's why you lived longer than my son," Walter said shrugging it off. "I would be curious to know how strong you were," Walter moved closer. "If you had been given more resent doses, which of cause you have."

"I have two fathers and I suddenly hate them both at different levels." Olivia squeezed his hand.

"The baby is another example. If I had become that obsessed with destroying their world and I had let Peter slip through my fingers then a Cortexiphan baby would be perfect. Of cause, it would also take longer to develop into something usable, but that wouldn't matter, I would try and get Peter back in the mean time. And." Walter paused thinking it through. "Yes, yes, yes... I would do that too. Use his DNA to create the child, a stronger measure of Cortexiphan as you probably both received it recently and with you and the child in my possession I could coax Peter back to my world telling him about the child and that you were still alive."

"Whoa," Peter said, forcing Walter to stutter to a stop. "You think he gave me more Cortexiphan, took my DNA and then used it to get Olivia pregnant."

"I don't think," Walter spat. "That's what I would do if I were in his position."

"Oh come on, that has to be..."

"He's right," Olivia cut in.

"What?"

It took a moment for Olivia to look at him. "The baby's yours. Doctor Miller did a paternity test, he gave me the results two days ago."

All Peter could do was stand and stare at her, she couldn't have said that, he had to be imagining it. Trying to stop his brain from flying off in a thousand directions at once, Peter pulled away from Olivia and ran the hand through his hair before scrubbing it down his face, pausing with it over his mouth.

"That baby's mine?" He asked simply. Olivia nodded and Peter's brain flew back to waking up in the motel in North Billerica, he'd woken with his hand on her stomach. It had seemed weird and strangely right. On the first train back, Astrid had closed her eyes for a while and Peter had rested his hand on Olivia's stomach, tucking his fingers under the blanket until he could feel the material of her t-shirt. Peter scratched at his jaw. "Okay," he rubbed his nose and sniffed. "What would you do now, then? You've lost me, you no longer have the woman you think I'm in love with and you definitely don't have a baby to dangle in front of me as bait."

"My only choice now would be to get one or both of you back. If I'm right, Peter, and he gave you Cortexiphan to help you cope with crossing over, then you and Olivia would have the same strong levels of it in your system. That push should be able to pass the abilities that come with the drug over to a child." Walter's hands came down near Olivia's stomach and she flinched in Peter's direction. On instinct he reached for her, and used an arm around her shoulder to pull her closer. "He wasn't wrong was he?" Walter asked. "He isn't guessing that you're in love with Olivia, he knows you are."

"Neither of you know anything about me." Peter said sourly.

"What did you tell him?"

"Nothing."

"What did you tell him about Olivia?"

"Just that her hair was different." It was only then that Peter realised Olivia was blonde again. He shifted his stance. "Yours is back to normal. How?"

"I don't know," Olivia said. "I realised after about a week that it was back to normal, figured they'd just washed the colouring out." Peter couldn't help but smile, he kinda missed the red hair.

"How?" he asked turning suddenly back to Walter.

"How?"

"How would he get me back now?"

"Ah, I suspect he will send more agents after you, and if that fails, he will come here looking for something else that he can take, something or someone you care for."

"Well at least that doesn't leave much for me to guard." Peter caught sight of the nurse in the corridor tapping her watch. "I think our visiting privilege has been revoked." He turned to Olivia. "I'll be back later, sans the crazy old man. Get some sleep."

Olivia nodded and he and Walter made their way back to the door. Peter paused, turning to watch Olivia settle back in her bed, her head turned away from him and her hand resting over her raise of her belly. He smiled and turned out the door.

~

"You up for a game of house?" Peter asked, stepping into the room the next day. Olivia was already up and dressed and looked as though she'd been sitting impatiently for hours, waiting to escape the place. He honestly couldn't blame her.

"House?" she asked, giving him her usual amused and confused smile.

"Yeah," he said, moving over and picking up the bag she had packed and ready to go. It only had a few things in it, item's he or Astrid had brought over the last few days, but it was still her stuff. "Broyles isn't happy with the idea that Walternate can send people after us so you, me and Walter get to play house for a while. He's moving us to a safe house on the other side of town." 

"Walter?" he knew the tone in her voice, though softened as much as possible, was more fear than anything else. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and guided her out of the room and down the corridor.

"Don't worry, I promise not to leave you alone with him."

By the time Peter pulled the car up at the new house, the truck behind them loaded with their things, Olivia and Walter were both asleep. It had been a long afternoon, packing up their things, and in Walter's case, the excitement of it all made him extra sleepy. Looking out the tinted windows, Peter saw the closest neighbour out in her garden, she very politely took interest in them, but returned to her gardening when Peter opened the door.

"Should we wake them?" Astrid asked from the seat behind Olivia. Peter took in Olivia, head resting against the window of the passenger seat, face relaxed and peaceful.

"Not just yet," he said. "Let's check out who's sleeping where and if anything needs to be done, I'd rather move Olivia in without waking her and that means moving her first."

Astrid nodded and got out the car. They both knew waking Walter would mean him babbling on and that would, in turn, wake Olivia. He'd watched her all afternoon, seen the freshness of her face from the time they'd left Massive Dynamic to the time they got in the car drain of life as the exhaustion settled back in. She wasn't ready for the whole day just yet, but she was getting there.

Peter walked up to the door aware that the gardening neighbour and the woman across the street were watching them. One of the men from the truck followed him and Astrid into the house and took orders from both of them as they walked around, surveying every room. Hoping, more than thinking, that Walter would rather have his room downstairs again, between kitchen and bathroom, he asked Astrid to make sure the study was transformed into a bedroom. Upstairs, one of the smaller rooms would become the study and Peter left the remaining two rooms to him and Olivia.

The moment he'd stepped into the main bedroom, he had labelled it Olivia's room, the decor suited her and the green bedspread made him think of her eyes. He'd take the smaller room, and if need be, he'd move into the study so they could create a nursery. He wouldn't push Olivia, but he kept hold of the hope that one day they could share a room and turn the other one into the baby's room.

Back outside, the removals man was relaying the orders he'd noted down while one of the other men opened the doors of the truck. Peter, still very aware that the two neighbours were watching, made his way back to the car and carefully opened the door to Olivia. He head lulled forward and she groaned in protest of being disturbed.

"Sorry, Livia," he whispered. "Just wanna get you settled into bed, it's gonna be way more comfortable than the car." She hummed in response and he smiled as he reached over to unclip her seatbelt. By the time he stood with Olivia in his arms, the neighbour on the other side had stepped out the front door to watch too, and Peter found himself wondering what was so fascinating about watching someone move in.

"There's nothing in the fridge or any of the cupboards," Astrid said, meeting him half-way to the door.

"Yeah, Broyles said we might need to do some shopping. We can order in tonight and figure the rest out tomorrow morning. Care to find us something yummy for dinner?"

"Sure, I'll grab my laptop. Do you want me to wake Walter?"

"Yeah, he can get his room sorted as soon as they've finished switching the furniture."

"I asked them to do that first, so they should be done soon." Astrid gave him a nod as she carried on towards the car.

Peter made his way carefully up the stairs, stopping the progress of the movers for a moment while he made his way up to the main bedroom. He smiled when he realised Astrid had thought ahead and pulled the covers back off the bed. He laid Olivia down carefully and she grumbled something in her sleep that sounded strangely like the word testing. As soon as he let her go, she rolled onto her side, away from him, and sighed before falling back to sleep. Peter leaned in and kissed her cheek, he would wake her later for dinner, then left to help the others.

~

For almost a month nothing happened and Peter began to relax in his new living situation. His most uncomfortable time was late at night, where he'd found himself settled on the bed in Olivia's room waiting for her to fall asleep. After the first night alone, when she'd woken screaming for him, he'd promised her he would be there until she was asleep, then go to bed. It worked perfectly for the first couple of weeks, but in the last week or so, the novelty of it seemed to be wearing off and a few nights had forced him back into her room to stop her from screaming.

That could be what had woken him up in the middle of the night now. The feeling or sense that she was going to wake screaming for him any minute now. He had to think of another way for her to get a good night's sleep, and him for that matter, maybe he could pull the mattress in and sleep on the floor in that room. Really, what he wanted to do, was share her bed. He'd waited long enough, he could wait a year or so for her to be ready and not pregnant if that's what she wanted. 

The flicker of a light made him turn towards the window, he couldn't see much from the bed, just the side of the tree on the edge of the back garden and the tip of the neighbours fence. He saw the flicker again, low down as though someone were walking across the back garden. Before Peter could think about moving, his door opened. He waited, wondering if someone had broken into the house and was checking to see if anyone was awake, he was just considering closing his eyes when they spoke.

"Peter?" Olivia said, low enough that if he were asleep she wouldn't have disturbed him. He sat up, twisting slightly to look at her.

"You okay?" he asked, trying to make out her shape in the darkness.

"There's someone in the garden," she said. He turned back to the window, slipping quietly out of the bed and moving to stand beside the window so he could look down. "I've been sitting by my window for a while," she offered. "I saw them come round the side of the house."

Peter couldn't see anyone from where he stood, the garden was empty. He stretched his neck, trying to see as far down the building as he could and as close to the wall as possible. Giving up on that side of the house, Peter ducked across to the other side of the window and looked down. Standing in the middle of the field stood a single man, from what Peter could see, he was wearing a hat and didn't look as though he was carrying a torch. A flicker of light crossed near his feet and a man appeared from the house and moved closer to him. It took Peter a moment to put two and two together and he turned sharply, took Olivia's arm and moved her to the bed.

"Stay here," he said. "Don't go near the window for a moment."

He turned out of the room before she could stop him or protest. Quickly he made his way down the corridor and stairs. He head to pause at the bottom, realising for the first time that Walter's light was on. He had to be careful about where he stood, if his shadow fell wrong, he would disturb the meeting and he wouldn't get to hear or see anything. Moving carefully along the hall to the kitchen, he was thankful that the light was still off and he slipped in and over to the open back door without being noticed.

"You are sure?" Walter asked. Peter dared a look at the man he was talking to, an Observer.

"Yes. All the agents returned while they had Agent Dunham." Walter nodded. "I have not been informed that any of them have returned yet."

"And you will tell us if they do return?"

"Yes." Peter dared another look as Walter stammered over how pleased he was to hear that piece of news and caught the Observer watching the door. "I must go," he said and turned quickly and walked away.

Walter flicked on his torch again and turned back to the kitchen. Peter waited, knowing he wouldn't expect anyone to be up right now he'd come in and vanish into his room without noticing him. As he predicted, Walter came in, humming to himself as he closed the door, walked passed Peter and vanished out of the room. His door clicked shut and a moment later the light went out. Peter only moved then, going back to his room quietly and found Olivia still sitting on his bed with his sheets pulled up to her chin.

"He's gone."

"Who was it?"

"Nobody, probably just someone looking for their dog." Olivia nodded. He hadn't expected her to buy that, but she was probably too tired to really take in what he'd said. "Come on, I'll sit with you til you're asleep again."

"Peter," she said stopping him from moving. "I get scared. Alone at night. It makes me feel like I'm sitting there waiting to be taken back to my cell."

Peter moved, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to her. He could easily suggest staying with her now, but he didn't want to put that pressure on her, the guilty feeling of her saying that wasn't what she had in mind if he was wrong. He needed her to ask for his company.

"What do you want to do?" He turned his head just slightly to watch her fiddle with a loose thread.

"Would you stay, in there with me?"

"For tonight?" he asked, wondering if she just wanted a few nights to get the idea out of her head.

"Always," she breathed. She hadn't turned to look at him and he knew she was ashamed at having to ask. He turned on the bed, and tipped her chin so she'd meet his eyes, he couldn't make out an expression or what he suspected would be the plea in her eyes, but he knew her well enough to be able to picture the look in his head.

"I will do anything for you," he told her. "You just have to ask." She nodded and he cocked his head in the direction of her bedroom. "Let's get some sleep now and talk about this tomorrow." Olivia nodded and he helped her off the bed and followed her back to her room.

~

The first attempt the other side had a catching him or Olivia had happened when he was in the lab with only Astrid. Taken off active cases for the time being, they had gone back to the university to pick up a few things Walter was insisting on having. They had no idea who the man was, but he appeared in the doorway with a gun pointing at him and demanded to know where Olivia was. Peter had spared no ounce of sarcasm in answering with every ridiculous thing he could think of while placing himself between the intruder and Astrid. It hadn't been out of protection, he knew she had a gun and he knew she didn't like to use and her aim hadn't been great last time she had.

He'd missed and ended up chasing the man out into the main corridors of the school. Thankfully, when he'd finally managed to kill the man it was in a mostly empty hallway. They had agreed not to tell Walter or Olivia about the attack at that point, but Peter know that wouldn't be the last attack. They were only just starting.

Three weeks later, after leaving Massive Dynamic, Peter and Olivia headed for the supermarket. In the last couple of weeks, Walter had managed to snack his way through almost every food item in the house. Peter hadn't been able to resist the jokes about him eating out of sympathy for Olivia's hungry belly and had even managed to tell Walter he was aiming for a bigger bump. The whole joke seemed to wash over him and instead Walter has presented them with a list of groceries he wanted.

"If we told Walter we wouldn't buy him any food for three months, do you think he'd take his time eating this?" Peter asked, scanning the list that seemed to go on for miles.

"I doubt it. He'll probably eat everything in a week, then start asking for weirder things than normal before wondering off and making you pick up the tab."

"In a couple of years," Peter started, turning down the next isle. "When I'm working three jobs to feed us, the baby and Walter, you'll have to remember me just why he got him out of the institute."

"I take it you want a better answer than to drive you nuts?"

Peter paused to give her a look that she missed as she picked something off the shelf. Movement at the end of the row caught Peter's attention and he turned in time to watch Newton vanish past the isle. He stiffened as Olivia stood up and turned to face him.

"What?" She asked, then turned to look down the other end of the row of cereal.

"Wait here." He turned, leaving the cart with Olivia and moved back to check down the next few rows. There was no sign of Newton or anyone that looked like him. He must have imagined it, always keeping his eye out for dangers had made him paranoid. He grabbed a bag of gummy bears from the shelf and headed back to the cereal. "Forgot..." the bag dropped from his hand. Halfway down the row Olivia stood with her back pressed against a man who looked a lot like Newton. His arm across her chest stopped her from moving and held her in a position Peter could only guess would be uncomfortable at almost six months pregnant. His other hand held tight to a gun he had pointed at Olivia's head.

Behind him, standing a few feet away was a security guard holding his pistol pointed at the back of the man's head. Several people stood watching beyond that and Peter knew several more where standing behind him. Peter raised his hands slowly to show he had nothing in them, no weapon that could hurt him.

"Let her go." The man shook his head. "He doesn't want her, he wants me."

"He said either."

"He'd want me more, with her, he'd have to wait three months for the baby to be born then at least eight years for it to be useful. That's assuming it survives the genetic defect that almost killed me."

"Yeah, that might be true, but she's less likely to fight back right now." He took a step back with Olivia and Peter heard the click of the gun from the guard behind him.

"And just how did you plan on getting out of here with a six month pregnant woman?"

"You're gonna let us walk out of here, or I'll shoot her."

"Shoot me, they shoot you, you fail," Olivia told him. "Of cause, shooting Peter has the same effect as he's the one currently telling the guard not to shoot. Then again, if he just shot me in the leg you'd have more trouble getting me to walk anywhere with you."

"And that right there," Peter said, indicating the quickly approaching sound of sirens. "Is more people with guns."

"Fine," the man said, moving the gun down from Olivia's head to point at her stomach. "Then you let us walk out of here, I'll shoot the baby."

"You're boss won't like that," Olivia breathed. Peter swallowed hard, he knew she was afraid and he could see the pain of it in her eyes.

"True," he said cocking the trigger and adjusting his grip. "But it'll mess you both up and leave you open for someone else to capture."

"Wait," Peter said quickly. He took a step forward, indicating for the guard behind him to move back as he tried hard to think of a way out of this. "Just wait." Before Peter could think of what to say next, the man barked out a surprised scream and dropped the gun. Olivia's elbow came up and Peter heard the crack of bone as she broke his nose. He tried to grab her as she moved away from him, but the shot rang out before he could so much as touch her coat. Olivia fell forward and Peter had a moments fear that she'd been hit before her capture looked down. Peter looked too, there was blood starting to spread out on his shirt, he twisted to see a second guard standing behind him. Another shot fired and the man dropped down to the ground.

"Olivia," Peter said moving to her side to check on her. She gripped his arm tight as she tried to catch her breath.

"I'm okay." She replied against his shoulder as he pulled her in for a hug.

"What in the world?" A man asked from behind Peter and he turned to see him staring at the gun on the floor. Only now it didn't look like a gun, but had melted into the marble tile. Peter grabbed for his phone, Broyles would have to come and sort this one out.

~

He could feel the baby move against his hand and he had to admit it was soothing and fascinating at the same time. Life - that's what it was, new life, completely innocent and unknowing of its surroundings or what mess its parents and grandfather had already made. Peter had always considered that teaching a child about babies and sex would be difficult, try explaining that there was more than one world and both worlds had more or less the same people. 'You have two grandfathers, one is evil, the other one crazy.'

He wanted to know if it was a girl or boy, but Olivia hadn't wanted to know, she liked the mystery and that shocked him just a little, she was usually looking for answers to big questions and for him, this was a big question - daughter or son. Yet, she'd told him she didn’t want to know, something about it being more fun this way, something Peter had yet to understand. How was there fun in buying pink clothes that you'd have to take back in a few months time and exchange for blue ones.

The door opened and the doctor stepped in. Peter made no move to take his hand from Olivia's bare stomach as the man moved around the room to wash his hands get what he needed. Junior gave a sharp kick and Peter grinned.

"He knows what's coming," he said. "I think he's getting ready to pose."

"He?" the doctor asked. "Thought you two were waiting."

"Olivia is, I'm taking a while stab in the dark that it's a boy. Last girl born in my family was my mother."

"Last one on mine was Ella," Olivia offered. "I have fresher genes."

"Alright," Peter said. "Then Ella will have a male friend to play with instead of just you and Rachel." Olivia laughed and tucked a hand behind her head.

"So you still don't want to know," the doctor asked.

"No," Olivia said.

"No room for compromise?" Peter asked.

"And just what do you have to compromise with? I current hold all the cards."

"Back rubs?" Peter tried hopelessly, he did those anyway, but it was worth a try. Olivia just grinned at him and batted his hand away as the doctor moved closer to them. "You can name him?"

"As we're not married, we never had sex to start with." Not that they did now. "And I'm the one with the back ache beyond anything you can even imagine - for starters, I'm naming him or her anyway," Olivia said playfully, then gasped as the gel hit her stomach.

"Sorry," the doctor muttered. "There we are," he continued. "One healthy baby...."

"Boy," Peter added.

"Will you be disappointed if it's a girl?"

"No. But I feel him kick and it's gonna be a boy."

"Oh, so when I give birth to a girl, I can tease you to no end." Peter grinned and shook his head, choosing to keep quiet for the rest of the exam.

Stepping out of Massive Dynamic a few moments later Peter had a sense of something being slightly off. He couldn't put his finger on it and he was thankful Olivia didn't seem to notice as he followed her to the car. He had to slow down as the sense of being watched washed over him and he turned just slightly to look around him, there was nothing, no one in the lot and the nearest people he could see where on the other side of the street looking in a shop window. He heard a muffled moan and turned back to the car to check on Olivia, but she was gone.

"Olivia?" he moved towards the car slowly, cautious that someone had grabbed her. His eyes still searching the area as he moved and he kept his attention sharp to any sound or slight movement he could detect. A blur of something off the corner of his eye had him turning sharply enough to knock a stun gun from a man's hand and it took a moment for the face to register in his head before a fist came flying at him.

"Do you ever wonder if there's a point to fighting?" Newton asked. "Especially when the outcome will always be the same, you lose and end up back in the world you belong in."

"I went willingly last time," Peter spat, taking a swing at the man, there was no way he was going back, and above all, there was no way Olivia was going back. "So you really can't say that's the absolute outcome."

"In that case, if you stopped fighting this would be over much quicker."

"Likewise," Peter said grabbing the stun gun. He stood sharply, reaching for Newton, only a few inches in front of him, there was no way he could miss. Sharp pain stung at the back of his neck and for a moment all Peter could feel was numbness down his back and legs before he felt the floor come up fast and hit him in the face. He caught sight of Olivia, pinned on her back by two others before he blacked out.

~

Peter opened his eyes to the familiar room, one chair, the one he sat in, and the overhead lamp that he knew was meant to intimidate him. It only made him think of all the bad cop shows and movies he'd watched in his lifetime. This wasn't the first time he'd been here, it wasn't the second or third either, but he had lost count after five. Every time was the same, Walternate would step in any minute now and ask him ever so politely to help him with the war. Always telling him that the world he had been living in was the one that started it, always telling him that they were the ones who needed to be stopped.

And Peter always told him there was no war.

Walternate would get angry; shout at him that he was too close to the people involved to see it. Shouted at him that he'd spent too much time there, become corrupted by them.

And Peter would always ask what he planned to do if his Olivia had been turned by them.

Frustrated, Walternate would start pacing the small room, trying to talk Peter into believing that he was a good man, trying to save his world from the destruction the other side threw at him, that he had never done anything to hurt them, least of all him.

Peter would laugh and demand to know where Olivia was.

Walternate would tell him she was never brought back with him, that she was still on her side.

Peter never believed him.

Annoyed at whatever witty retort Peter had thrown at him, Walternate would leave the room, only to return ten minutes later and start the conversation all over again.

It would go on for hours. The first time it had happened, Peter had easily lost track of time, he'd been dragged from the room some time later and thrown into a cell similar to where he'd found Olivia months ago. This time, though, the room was light and the door had a window that was never blocked off. But with no windows and only two meals in what he guessed was a day, he had no way of knowing if it was day or night out and even less idea of how long he'd been stuck there.

He always focused on Olivia, there had been just over two months left before her due date when they'd been captured and he prayed that time hadn't already passed. In the rare moments he thought it had come and gone, he hoped that she had never been brought here and she was lying back in their house, in their bed, holding their baby. The mental image of it, and Walter bringing her things always made him smile.

As if the thought were forbidden, the door opened and Walternate stepped into the room. The blue suit he wore this time was lighter than the previous and it did nothing to settled Peter's nerves about the man, he would only ever think of him as the one trying to destroy his home. 

"Shall we try this again, Peter?"

"I'd really rather we didn't," Peter retorted, not giving him the chance to start his usual, we're the ones being forced to war speech. It didn't work.

"We are not the ones that started this war, Peter."

"You're the only ones who think you're at war. So right now, you're the ones starting it. Considering we were never at war."

"They came here first, they destroyed a whole forest just outside out city, they are the ones who contaminated the university. Killed all those people."

"No, you were the ones who killed those people by putting them in that quarantine. There is no war."

"You don't see it, Peter," Walternate shouted. "You've grown too close to them, too close to see that they did this to us. They took you from me, and it caused a catastrophic chain of events."

"HE took me to save me. HE took me because you were about to let me die. He never intended to keep me."

"And now he's corrupted you. You think you're one of them."

"Rather one of them than here fighting an imaginary war," Peter retorted.

"They've changed who you were."

"I was seven, I didn't know who I was. And just what would you have done when your Olivia Dunham found out you were wrong? Would you have killed her for coming back to tell you it was all a mistake? A miss understanding?"

"You killed her."

"Before she had the chance to kill Walter. My father."

"I am your father," Walternate spat, his face turning red.

"You're just an overbearing, egotistical man in charge of a division that is completely worthless. You're paranoid and I'd rather have the crackpot in their world as a father than you."

Walternate backed off and started pacing. Peter used the moment to test the restraints on his arms, whoever brought him here each time always used the same method of holding him down. He'd been trying to work out how to get free.

"We have never hurt anyone, Peter."

"Right. I'll tell that to the people in quarantine and the people in the other world who died at the hands of one of your agents. I'm not helping you until I see Olivia." He wouldn't help anyway, but he needed to know she was alright.

"You killed Olivia Dunham."

"My Olivia, the Olivia from the other side, the one you inseminated with my child. Call her Dunham, call her Olive, call her bitch if you want, just tell me where she is."

"I already told you, she wasn't brought here with you."

"And I already told you, I don't believe you. Like I've already told you, there's no war."

"Yes, well you can understand why I don't believe you."

"Not in the slightest," Peter said lowly. He watched the anger twist on Walternate’s face before the man turned and left the room.

Peter used the time to fiddle with the restraints, he managed to get his hand back enough to free it when the door opened and Walternate walked back in. Peter just glared at him, watching as he paced the room for a moment before turning to Peter. He opened his mouth to speak when the alarms went off and a shadow of annoyance passed Walternate’s features. He turned, moving to the door and was reaching for the handle when it opened. The uniformed girl straightened when she came face to face with Walternate and Peter used their distraction to wriggle his other hand out of the restraint.

"Sir," the girl said. "She's escaped."

Peter's head came up to stare at them as Walternate turned back to look at him and then left the room. He'd been right not to trust the man, he'd lied about Olivia.

~

It was like an advanced game of hide and seek, though Olivia hadn't decided if it was because she was almost nine months pregnant and her stomach stuck out or because she could barely move from the pressure on her bladder. Either way this game was not fun and she didn't know how long she could keep it up for. She just knew that staying here would mean losing her baby. She didn't want that, she couldn't handle that and she'd never be able to face Peter if it happened.

She ducked back around the corner and Walternate appeared at her cell door, she hadn't made it far to start with and she was a little surprised they hadn't found her yet. She peeked out, checking to see if anyone was looking before she moved as quickly as possible across the corridor and started down the hallway. Walternate had come from this direction and she was hoping it would lead her to Peter, or a way out.

She heard someone shouting from behind her and ducked into an open room to wait. Footsteps running in her direction forced her to press her back against the wall and for just a moment the pressure relaxed and she almost let out a sigh. The man passed and she slumped forward slightly and instantly felt the twang of pain in her stomach, then the baby kicked.

"Stop protesting, I'm trying to get us out of here," she whispered. "Finding your father will be an added bonus, but for now, let's work on us."

She checked the coast was clear again before she continued down the hall to the next corner. There were several men standing around it, the conversation hurried and she knew it would just be a matter of minutes before the men had their orders and would likely split up to search. She tested the door nearest her, it was locked. She tried a few others, all locked. She'd be trapped if one of the men came her way.

A chorus of 'Yes sir' rounded the corner and she turned, worried and waited for the man. For a moment it didn't happen, for a moment she thought she would be safe, until the pain shot through her stomach and back and she groaned. Footsteps round the corner and she looked up to see the stone face of a man in his later fifties staring at her. His hand came up towards his ear as the fire extinguisher came around the corner and met with the back of his head. Peter followed it around with a grin on his face.

"That felt too good," he said. "You okay?"

"No," Olivia breathed. "I think my water just broke."

"Crap," Peter said a little too loudly and then moved towards her. "We need to find somewhere to hide."

"Back there," She said, indicating back the way she'd come to the room she'd previously hid in.

"Too far, by the time we get back there someone will have started looking down this hall."

"Know any magic tricks to open these doors?"

"Plenty, but they all involve explosives I don't currently have and would make too much noise."

"We can't just stand here," she pointed out, noticing that he was studying her. The cogs in his brilliant brain where turning and she didn't like the feel of it.

"Olivia." He paused to swallow and check down the corridor. "You can get us home."

"No," she protested. "I don't know how."

Peter turned back to the downed soldier and hunted through his pockets. He pulled out the man's 'show me' card and gun before turning back to Olivia.

"You've done it before."

"I had help. There were three others with me and Walter and..." Several men nearby shouted and she felt her heart race in her chest. They had to start moving or this would all be over.

"I'd like to know how you do it," Walternate said, stepping around the corner to join them. Peter placed himself between her and the man and raised the gun. "What is it that gives you this ability to cross over and destroy my world?"

"No one from our world has purposely done damage here," Peter said. "How many more times do I have to say it," he added as a growl.

Several men rounded the corner behind Walternate as the pain of a contraction forced her to grip Peter's shoulder. Behind her several more men were running in their direction. It was over, she knew it was there was no way she could run and not a chance Peter could fight them all at the same time. She really wanted to be in Walter lab right now, demanding pain killers.

"It's over, Peter," Walternate said, stepping towards them. "I induced Olivia's labour, she'll be giving birth in a matter of hours, less than one if we're lucky." Peter glanced over his shoulder at her as she tightened her grip. Olivia let her eyes close, trying desperately to remember what Walter had said to help them find their way here to look for Peter. She tried clearing her mind, except for the picture of Walter standing in the middle of the four of them. She could hear Peter talking nearby, but the words were lost as he focused on Walter in the theatre.

Her hand came up to Peter, taking hold of him with both hands as she tried hard to remember what she had to do. Think back to when she was a child. She pictured herself, small and frightened in the corner of the blackened room. She imagined herself then, wishing she could be somewhere else, in a world where the room was still white and fresh and didn't smell like burnt plastic and metal. The pain of a contraction pushed against her spine and she took in a sharp breath as she heard a gunshot then opened her eyes.

Peter turned quickly to stare at her in amazement. She only had a moment to realise the pain she'd felt hadn't been a contraction at all, but the moment they'd crossed over, back to their world. Then the real pain hit her and she almost doubled over.

~

The cry of pain Olivia let out shocked Peter to the bones and he spared a moment to be thankful that the hall of the university were empty. He heard a door close somewhere down a nearby hallway and wondered if he could call for help or if he could manage to get Olivia down the lab without too much trouble. He didn't want to think of the possibility that Walternate hadn't lied about enducing a fast labour. He turned away from Olivia, feeling her hand tighten over his hand and looked down the corridor, hoping that the person would appear soon.

"Peter," Olivia said, drawing his attention again. "I think we need to go to a hospital."

"And tell them what? That we waited until you were 2 minutes away from pushing before we came in, or that some crazy man gave you a drug to the fastlane?"

"We need a doctor."

"Peter?" Peter turned to Astrid, standing shocked a few paces away from them. "You're back!"

Peter's brain kicked in and everything came together easily. He turned to Olivia. "We'll get someone here. Astrid, I need help with Olivia, we need to get her down to the lab and then call Massive Dynamic, ask for Doctor Benton to come and help us and he better be quick."

"Right," Astrid said, moving closer as Olivia cried out in pain. "How long has she been in labour?"

"About half an hour," Peter said and caught the look of shock. "Walternate gave her something."

They made their way down to the lab quickly and Astrid vanished in to the office as Peter helped Olivia get comfortable. He knew that wouldn't last and edged her onto her side so he could rub at her back. He watched her grab hold of the edge of the metal bed she was laying on and took in the tightened jaw before she growled through the new wave of pain.

"It's over, Olivia," he said encouragingly. "We're safe now, our baby will be safe from him."

"You can't know that," She countered, taking a deep breath and letting it out before sucking in the next between clenched teeth.

"I killed him," Peter said. He squeezed at her hip before he added, "I shot him in the head before you brought us back here."

"Doctor's on the way," Astrid said, moving over to take Olivia's hand. He caught the wince on her face as Olivia squeezed her just a little too tight and he couldn't help but smile at her. "I called Agent Broyles and Walter too," she told him.

~

It seemed like a slow eternity before anyone showed up and Peter wasn't surprised that Broyle and Walter arrived before the doctor. Walter, being his usual frantic self rushed around the room trapped between excitement and worry over Olivia's condition. He had been fascinated for a while over the drug Walternate had given her to push her labour so fast. After a few minutes he swtiched to offering Olivia drugs to help with the pain, but she refused them all, not that Peter blamed her, he wouldn't trust anything Walter had to offer. He had, of cause, considered offering something earlier, but he didn't want to risk what he gave her mixing with whatever Walternate had given her barely an hour ago.

The doctor arrived with Nina Sharp minutes later and Olivia screamed that she didn't want everyone to see her give birth. Broyles pushed Nina and Walter out of the room, leaving Peter and Astrid to help Olivia. They had to hurry to get ready, the baby had already started crowning as Doctor Benton checked Olivia was still strong and healthy. Peter didn't have to question that, the grip she had on his hand felt like it was crushing his bones together. On her other side, Astrid kept a cool cloth on her face, keeping her temperature under control as Olivia began to push.

It was barely ten minutes later that Peter heard the cries of his baby and his heart thudded in his chest at the sound, it was amazing to hear, just as the heartbeat had been for the last six months. He couldn't bring himself to move away from her side, but he wanted desperately to know if he had a son or a daughter and the suspense was starting to get to him.

"It's a girl," Benton announced a moment later. Peter found himself exhaling a breath he didn't realise he'd been holding and he grinned down at Olivia. "Do you two have a name?"

"No," Peter said, they'd barely touched on the subject of names.

"Elizabeth," Olivia said after a breath. Peter frowned before he caught on to what she was doing. "Her name is Elizabeth Bishop-Dunham."

Peter felt this heart clench. "Thank you," he whispered.

"I told you it would be a girl," Olivia said, half teasing. "Like I told you I'd be naming her."

"Feel free to hold it over me," Peter said with a grin, watching Benton clean up and check over Elizabeth.

"I'll let you off all future ridicule if I can get a couple of good nights sleep in the next few days."

"Deal," he said. She had to be exhaused between being trapped on the other side, using her gift to get them home and giving birth and Peter would be damned if this was going to be their only child. But that was a conversation he'd have to bring up in a few months time.

Benton moved around the side of the bed and carefully handed the bay girl over to Olivia. Peter couldn't resist leaning in and kissing the still goey head of his daughter before kissing Olivia. He'd never felt so relaxed and happy in his life, he loved them both more than he had ever thought possible.


End file.
